Oil burner unit



' Dec. 24, 1940. E. L.. woon OIL BURNER UNIT Filed Aug. 23. 1937 5 SheelS--Sheeil 2 /N VENTO/e 7n/dm? z. waa? A TTORNEY DeC. 24, 1940. E L, WOOD 2,226,212

' ou, BURNER UNH Filed Aug. 25, 1937 Z.. Sheets-Sheet 3 55 6P a? gg o /NI/ENTOR v Zyl/Vd?! Waag? A R/vg ys.

Panarea D.z4,194o

' I UNITED STATES'- OIL BURNER UNIT Edward L. Wood, Detroit, Mich, assignor to Gar Wood Industries, Inc., Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application August 23, 1937, Serial. No. 160,545

1 Claim.

My invention relates to oil burning units and particularly to a fluid burning unit having a fluid 1 propelling means forming the support for the air propeller and nozzle all of which is driven by a motor disposed adjacent thereto and forming part of the unit.

In my co-pending application, Serial No. 158,560, filed August 11, 1937, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, I illustrated, described and claimed a motor as the means for driving a pump, air propeller and nozzle and as the means by which they were supported and driven. The unit thus formed was self-contained and was reslliently friotionally mounted within a cylindrical casing which formed a part of the burning unit. The burning unit, being removable as a unit from the casing, provides simplicity of repair for all of the parts thereof.

In my present invention, I have further simplified the-'oil burning structure by utilizing the uid propeller or pump as the means'for supporting the air propeller and nozzle all of which is driven by a motor supported adjacent thereto. The

Y motor may be directly connected or belt driven r and is readily detachable from the pump for repair or to permit the repair of the pump or other units of the oil burning device. The tubular casing'encompassing the nozzle may be a fixed part of the heating ,unit to which the oil burning unit may be attached or the casing maybe formed as a permanent part of the oil burning unit and the casing and unit supported upon a furnace Where the furnace is to be converted to burn fluid or where an oil burner is to be replaced.

The pump is constructed to have the pressure on the shaft balanced, to eliminate thrust. A high pressure orifice is provided from the pressure regulating valve which is connected to the shaft bearing and to the hollow portion of the pump shaft. A seal is providedlfor the shaft adjacent to a passage communicating with the low pressure side of the pump to prevent leakage of the iiuid outside of the pump casing, While an orifice may be provided in the casing housing from the valve to the bearing, i-t will be understood that a conductor may be employed outside of the housing to provide such connection.

A floating connection is preferably provided between the motor and the pump shaft. A pulley may be supported on thev shaft housing by a bearing and a resilient connection provided between the shaft and pulley to permit misalignment of the axes of the shaft and pulley while providing a positive drive connection vtherebetween. The motor is'supported preferably from the pump or pump supporting element and the motor pulley aligned with the pulley of the pump and connected by a belt. The motor may also be supported rearwardly of the pump with its shaft disposed in approximate alignment with the shaft of the pump. A detachable universal connection is preferably employed between the shafts of the motor and pump to permit separation of the shafts and misalignment therebetween.

A motor having a hollow shaft may be utilized having the shaft extended rearwardly and exibly joined to the driven element of a pump. The

shaft is floated in the pumpcasing in which the pump gear is journaled and a flexible driving connection is made therebetween which permits theA misalignment of the shaft and the axis of the gear when driving the gear from the shaft. The oil may be delivered to the end of .the shaft or when the pressure on the shaft is to be balanced, a sleeve may be provided for the shaft -to which the oil is conducted and passed through apertures in the shaft to the hollow opening interior thereof.

Accordingly, the main objects of my invention are; to provide an oil burner unit with a pump which when operated drives the air propeller and nozzle which is supported thereon; to attach a casing to a pump which supports an air propeller and nozzle and which is driven therewith; to provide an oil burner unit, in which the pump supports the rotating elements which are driven by a motor which is flexibly connected to the pump; to drive a pump for a burner unit with a motor having a belt and pulley connection therebetween; to provide a driving pulley for a pump, which is mounted on a bearing on the pump housing, with a flexible connection with the pump shaft to permit misalignment of the axes of the shaft and pulley; to connect an orifice from the regulating valve of the pump to the shaft between the shaft ends to provide a balanced pressure condition for the shaft; to float a gear of a pump on a projection of a driven shaft to provide a drive connection therebetween to permit the misalignment of the axes thereof; and in general to provide a unit oil burning device which is simple in construction, positive in operation and economical of manufacture.

Other objects and features of novelty o'f my invention will be specifically pointed out or will become apparent when referring, for a better understanding of my invention, to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a sectional view, with parts broken away, of an oil burner unit embodying features of my invention; f

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 1, taken on the line 2-2 thereof;

l Fig. 3 is an end view of the oil burner unit i1- lustrated in Fig. 1 viewed from the right end thereof;

Fig. 4 is a view in elevation with parts broken and in section of structure, similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1, showing a modified form thereof; o

Fig. 5 is a view with parts broken and in section of structure, similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1, showing a second modified form thereof;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of structure. illustrating a further form which my invention may assume; and

Fig. 7 is a view oi a structure, similar to that illustrated in Fig.` 6, showing a modified form thereof.

Referring more particularly to Figs. l, 2 and 3, I have illustrated an oil burner unit embodying a casing I0 which is illustrated as being a portion of a heating device, being welded or otherwise secured to the chamber II thereof. 'Ihe casing I Il is preferably annular in form and provided with a flange I2 to which a bracket I3 is secured for supporting a pump I5. A bracket I1 is connected to the bracket I3 and a bracket I8 is connected to the pump for supporting a plate I3 to which a motor 2I is hingedly secured by a plate 22.

A pump shaft 23, which drives `a. pair of gears (not shown) in the conventional manner, is mounted in a bearing 24 disposed within an annular projection 25 on the pump housing. The annular projection 25 forms a raceway for roller bearings 28 of the needle type on which a pulley 21 is rotatably supported. 'I'he pulley is provided with a V groove 28 and is aligned with a pulley 29 of the motor 2l which pulleys are connected by a belt 3|. The pulley is provided with a stuffing box 32 spaced from the shaft in which a packing element 33, which may be made of rubber or similar material, is disposed. By tightening a nut 34, the material 33 grips the shaft 23 and forms a flexible driving connection between the shaft and pulley.

Between the bracket I3 and the pump I5 a resilient member 35 is provided and resilient washers 31 are disposed under the clamping bolts 36 to resiliently mount the unit on the bracket I3. Similarly, a rubber element 46 is employed between the bracket I3 and motor 2| while a flexible element 41 is disposed between the bracket I8 and pump. As a result, the pump and the motor are resiliently mounted relative to the bracket I3 and casing I0 and a resilient driving connection is provided between the pulley 21 and shaft 23, completely insulating all of the driving and driven elements against the passage of sound to the casing III and the heating device on which the burner unit is employed.

The pressure side of the pump is connected to the chamber 38 containing a pressure regulating valve 39. The valve is adjustable to regulate the pressure of the oil delivered to the outlet 4I thereof. The outlet is joined by an orifice 42 to the bearing 24 where a recess 43 is provided in the bearing about the shaft, communicating with radial openings 44 in the shaft and the central opening 45 thereof. The oil delivered within the body portion of the shaft inwardly of its end, provides a balanced pressure condition both radially and longitudinally of the shaft. A sealing member 40 seals the shaft forwardly of the orifice 42 and recess 43, and orifice 53 is disposed between the sealing element and the recess and connected to the low pressure side of the pump to relieve excess pressure from the sealing element.

Brackets 5I are connected to the bracket I3 and to a plate 52 the shape of a washer which projects within the element I0 and forms a seal therewith. The seal is produced by an annular ring of material 53 which is disposed in a channel formed on the periphery of the plate 52. A central opening 54 is provided in the plate l2. the size of which is regulated by the shutter element 55 which may be regulated to close of! the open- 5 ing a desired amount and control the ammmt of air propelled therethrough by the air propeller element 6B which is mounted directly on the shaft 23 of the pump.

The air propelling means embodies a plurality 10 of radially` disposed blades I3 mounted on a plate 51 having angularly disposed end portions 53 which propels the air through a cone-shaped air deflecting element 53 disposed within the element In. The air propelling element. the hub therefor, l5 the nozzle 6I driven thereby. as well as the centrifugal valve 62 supported within the hub are similar to those illustrated in my above mentioned copending application and will not be described herein in detail. The air directing ele- 20 ment 59 is preferably provided with a plurality of air deflectors 33 for preventing the churning of the air within the 'deector and forces it-to pass outwardly through neck 34 thereof. A pair of electrodes 35 project through the casing I3 to 25 be disposed adjacent to the end of the nozzle 3|.

A transformer 66 is mounted on the bracket I3 and is connected in the usual manner to a source of supply, control means and to the electrodes 35.

In Fig. 4, I have illustrated another method of 30 introducing the oil under pressure from the valve 39 to the bearing 24 of the structure illustrated in Fig. l. The pump I5 has the outlet 4I of the pump 39 of Fig. l connected to a conductor 63 of Fig. 4 having its opposite end connected in the 35 wall of the projection 25 of the pump from which fluid is delivered to the hollow shaft 23 through the passageway 33 in the bearing 24. The construction and operation of the pump is otherwise the same as that illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, in- 40 elusive, the conductor 63 simplifying the connection from the valve 39 to the bearing 24 on the shaft. 'Ihe housings of some of the standard pumps employed in the art are so constructed that it is difficult t0 provide them with the orifice 45 42 and in such instance, the conduit 93 may be utilized.

Referring further to Fig. 4, the pump I5 is supported by the bracket I3 and supports and drives the air propeller and nozzle as above described 50 relative to the structure of Fig. 1. The shaft 23 of the pump is driven by a motor 10 which is resiiiently supported on a plate 1I by brackets 12 and 13 attached to the bracket I3 and the pump respectively. 'I'he shaft of the pump is extended 55 rearwardly through a projection 14 0n the pump housing and connected to the motor shaft 15 by a universal connector 16. A sealing element 4l is employed to seal the rear end of the extended shaft, the seal being similar to the one above de- 00 scribed for the front end of the shaft. A pressure relieving aperture (not illustrated) is provided within the projection 14 and connected to the low pressure side of the pump. The direct drive thus provided eliminates the belt and pulley em- 65 ployed with the structure illustrated in Fig. 1, but has the disadvantage of utilizing a second sealing element with the shaft portion projecting rearwardly of the pump.

In Fig. 5, I have illustrated the casing I0 as 70 being provided with an'annular flange 11 which may be bolted to the face 18 of a heating unit to provide a support for the entire unit burner assembly. The air defiectors 59 have neck portions 19 of various lengths to be selected as re- 75 quired for the particular furnace upon which the burner is to be employed. Similarly, the nozzles 6| may be of various lengths to conform to the lengths of the necks 19 selected. The air deilector 59 is a separate element of the casing l0 and may be interchanged to provide the proper size of opening through the neck 19. While I have illustrated in Fig. 1 the casing I0 as being a permanent part of the furnace, and in Fig. 5 as being the supporting means for the entire unit, it is to be understood -that the casing forms a part of the burner unit and that the unit may be supported otherwise than in the manner particularly illustrated.

A dish-shaped element 49 may be employed to support the pump |5 and enclose the rear end of the casing I0. A shutter |00 is slidably disposed on the side of the element for regulating the size of the opening provided in the side. A slot 60 has a stud extending therethrough, which stud is secured to the shutter |00 and is the means by which the shutter is adjusted and clamped. It is to be understood that a plate 52 could be bolted to the flange l2 in place of the dish-shaped element, in which instance the plate supports the pump I5 and controls the amount of air propelled by the blades 56 through a central adjustable opening. The plate 52 is preferably employed in combination with the dish-shaped element 49 to control the flow of air to the base of the blades 56.

In Fig. 6, I have illustrated a further form of my invention wherein the motor (not illustrated) is disposed forwardly of the pump, providing a combination similar to that described in my above-mentioned co-pending application. The shaft 8| of the motor is supported in the motor bearings and is free floating within the housing 82 of the pump. By this arrangement, any deilection of the shaft 8| is eliminated and the fatigue which would ultimately result in the rupture of the shaft, is thereby eliminated. The pump gear 83 has bearing surfaces 84 thereon which are journaled in the plates 85 which encompass the gear 83 and the idler gear 86. gear 83 has the opening therein larger than the shaft and provided with a recess for receiving an annular resilient element 81' which is compressed by a nut 88 to form a. driving connection between the gear and shaft which is floating and which permits the misalignment of the axes of the gear and shaft. The oil from the high pressure side of the gears is delivered through the opening 89 to the pressure regulating valve 44 and through the opening 90 to the hollow shaft 9| of the gear 86. The oil then passes through the slot 92 to the end of the shaft 8| and through the motor in a manner described in my above mentioned co-pending application.

To provide a balanced pressure condition to the shaft 8|, I have illustrated in Fig. 1 a shaft 93 which is provided with an annular slot 94 communicating through openings 95 with the shafts hollow interior. The rear end of the shaft carries a plug 96 which reacts against the pressure built up by the nozzle 6|. The gear 83 is mounted on the shaft 93 and supported by the plates 85 in the manner illustrated in Fig. 6. Between the innermost plate 85 and the housing 82 a sleeve 91 is journaled on the shaft 93 to float thereon. A flexible conductor 98 connects the aperture 99 from the pressure regulating valve 44 to the sleeve 91. The oil under pressure is delivered to the interior of the shaft 93 between its ends and as a result a balanced pressure condition is provided for the shaft. Referring to Fig. 6, the aperture ||I| in the housing may be omitted since this aperture was a means through which a tool could reach and adjust the connector which joined the shafts of the pump andv motor in the structure illustrated and described in my above mentioned co-pending application. In the present construction the shaft is continuous and the connector is no longer required so that the aperture |0| has no necessary utility.

'I'he unit structure thus provided is rugged and positive in operation. The shaft of the pump supports and drives the air propeller and nozzle of the unit and is hollow to deliver oil under pressure from the pump to the nozzle. The oil is de.. livered to the shaft preferably through the wall between the shaft ends so as to provide a balanced pressure condition which eliminates a thrust on the shaft. A belt drive may be employed for actuating the pump to reduce the number of seals required for the pump shaft, and where the shaft extends from both ends of the pump the one end is preferably driven by a motor having its shaft disposed substantially co-axial therewith. A flexible connector is provided between the shafts to take care of any misalignment therebetween.

The motor, the pump, the casing and other elements of the burner are preferably connected together as a unit on a bracket which may be supported from the ground, the door of the furnace or directly on the furnace face. The casing of the burner may be an integral part of a furnace to which the pump, air propeller, nozzle, and driving means are attached as a unit. A plate may be sealed in the casing and have an opening which is provided with shutters which regulates the amount of air passing through the opening to meet the changing service conditions. When the motor shaft is directly connected to the gear of the pump, it is floated within the pump housing. The gears are journaled within the housing and a flexible drive connection is provided between the shaft and the gear to permit the misalignment thereof without flexing the shaft.

It is to be understood that the arrangement of the elements may be utilized either for high or low pressure delivery of the oil Such delivery may be made of the oil directly or gases or other substances may be mixed with the oil for aiding in breaking up the fluid into a readily combustible mixture. Heavy or light oils at low or high pressures may be employed with my novel burner, the construction lending itself toV have such oil delivered from the propelling elements through the hollow pump shaft to the nozzle.

While I have described and illustrated several embodiments of my invention, it will be apparent t those skilled in the art that various changes, omissions, additions and substitutions may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, as set forth in the accompanying claim.

What I claim is:

An oil burning unit embodying a pump having a hollow shaft, means for driving said shaft, air propelling means having a hollow hub securedto said shaft and rotatable therewith, a centrifugally actuated valve in said hub, means for conducting oil under pressure to the interior of said shaft, and a nozzle secured to and rotated with said shaft.

EDWARD L. WOOD. 

